“If there’s any chance he doesn’t have the title any more, for sure, I would love to fight for the belt,” Nogueira said Thursday.

Nogueira has brushed aside repeated questions of retirement as one of the most seasoned veterans in the sport today. A former PRIDE champion and interim UFC champ, the 36-year-old fighter’s career might get a storybook ending with another belt.

For now, a hurdle stands in his way: Nogueira (34-7-1 MMA, 5-3 UFC) will fight Werdum (16-5-1 MMA, 4-2 UFC) in a traditional season-ending fight between “TUF” coaches. The winner will undoubtedly be in line to fight for the belt.

“This fight is going to be very important for me, because if I win or lose, it’s one step forward or one step back,” he said. “So I want to be fighting the best guys in the division. I want to be [within] the top guys in the division.”

The reality show begins filming in early 2013 and is expected to debut in March in Brazil on Globo TV. (FUEL TV could air the season later, as it did with the first season of the show this past summer.)

Nogueira and Werdum first met in 2006 in the now-defunct PRIDE with Nogueira earning a decision victory. He most recently defeated Dave Herman at UFC 153, while Werdum bested Mike Russow at UFC 147.

Nogueira’s relationship with Dos Santos stretches back to the champ’s days as a jiu-jitsu blue belt and his early MMA training. The two still train together under the Team Nogueira banner.

“He’s my friend and my training partner,” Nogueira said.

In a 2011 interview, Dos Santos mirrored Nogueira’s unwillingness to fight, telling Fighters Only that he considered the 36-year-old fighter a brother and the person responsible for his rise.

Of course, should Werdum beat Nogueira, the issue would be moot.

Dos Santos is next set to rematch Cain Velasquez in the main event of UFC 155, which takes place Dec. 29 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

As the UFC 189 tour made its last stop in Dublin, featherweight champ Jose Aldo was met with a torrent of abuse from the Irish fans. It might have been unpleasant, but it might also have been just what he needed.